SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — The smell of jet fuel is still lingering in the Murphy Canyon neighborhood, which turned into an inferno after last Thursday’s horrific fiery plane crash that killed six people.
On Monday, remediation crews were scraping ash off a burned driveway. Steps away, the home on the property, which the jet crashed into, looked apocalyptic with the front of the structure walloped.
The horrifying images in the wake of the tragedy have inspired strangers to step up and help.
“We were having service members drive down from Camp Pendleton, spouse clubs from Camp Pendleton. Somebody came down from Ventura. People were coming out from Imperial Beach from the border bringing merchandise,” said Tony Teravainen, the CEO of Support the Enlisted Project.
The nonprofit is collecting donations for Murphy Canyon residents who are now displaced.
STEP gives everything from food to toothbrushes, and car seats to military families in need.
“We actually walk with them for the year after. And then during that, we'll help restore, retain the basic necessities. So, we can pay the transmission shop, we can pay their landlord, we can get them food, we can get them diapers,” Teravainen said.
He said the nonprofit is connecting social workers with evacuees from the military housing neighborhood to help them navigate the tragedy.
“All of our social workers have military experience and they also have financial credentials. So, they're all certified financial counselors as well.”
Teravainen knows the stress the evacuees are going through. A wildfire destroyed his home in 2007.
“When I lost my house, a lot of people were telling me what to do. A lot of people were telling me, 'I should go here, I should go there, you should talk to this person, you need to go, you need to go there,' and it becomes very overwhelming.”
Liberty Military Housing said 42 families are displaced from their homes and are currently staying in temporary accommodations. The company expects the clean-up in Murphy Canyon to take roughly two weeks.
Residents are not paying for temporary housing, the company said, adding it has worked with Airbnb and other organizations to get evacuees a place to stay.
Liberty said residents who are unable to move back into their homes will be given options to relocate.
STEP is accepting monetary donations from anyone who wants to help.
